If you can't afford dogfood...don't get a dog.

I should warn you. This is going to bother some people. And you should know it's not my intention to hurt feelings. But I have had enough. And when I have had my fill I like to express my side. And this is my blog, so I'm going to go ahead and do that. Now.

This is about government aide and more specifically wic. I have had so many run ins with this lately. And a friend of mine wrote a blog, I made a comment (that I knew people wouldn't want to hear) and then some people wrote their defense. Even though I wasn't talking about or to them. Funny thing. These blogs. If were not careful we can take offense where none was meant. I'm guessing that will happen here.

First of I should say I have never used wic. Not because we didn't qualify. Not because money is flowing about our ears. Because its not. But because I believe if you have children it is YOUR responsibility to provide for them. Not the government (aka the working class people) I'm a republican. I'm fairly liberal. That's another subject though. But on this I am a republican. True to the heart. And I would argue that if you receive these services than you should vote democrat. But we won't get into to that. At least not right now.

Now I believe these services need to be in place. People need them. People lose jobs, get hurt, lose money, things happen. That's life. And as a society we should look out and care for each other. We need to. We need these services. They do a world of good. They are such a blessing to those that need them. I am grateful I live in this country.

But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm bothered by the abuse of the system. I have zero respect for those that use the system because it is there. It is repulsive to me to see so many people on wic, with smart phones, brand new cars. Cable, brand new clothes, gap dressed children. This is where I get bothered. I can't stand the hypocrisy that goes on. How is that you cannot afford to feed your baby but you can afford an iPhone? And iPad? And new car? And cable? It's not right. I firmly believe that before people can get aide, we look into there spending. And make them cut back. And them if they really cannot provide for their own then get them some help! Do you know we have NEVER had cable? We don't have new cars. And yet, we provide for our family.

The thing that worries me is this feeling of entitlement. How sad is our generation. We feel so entitled to everything and yet we have such a lack of works ethic. So sad. So many people have taken out loans, and yet feel they shouldn't have to pay them back. Sometimes I wonder what planet these people came from. I know I'm not alone, my hubs, my family, my friends share these views with me.

The thing that bothers me is how lax we have become. Did you know once upon a time people didn't talk about being on wic. It was a source of shame. It was a quit a matter that families worked hard to get out of. While, I don't think people should be ashamed for needing help (who doesnt) what bothers me is how open people are. Oh you can get this for free. Or eq presidents announcing to their groups "hey the rules have changed, so you will need to cut back on your hours to get more money". This is appalling. I have seen it too often. I'm hoping that its just this small little town I currently reside in. If a mother CAN nurse her baby then I believe she should. If she quits because she doesn't like it (who does?) Then I think SHE should buy her own Dang formula. If she can't nurse, or needs to supplement then they should get the help they need. If its a matter of luxury, well I don't think tax payers should have to provide that.

Then there's the school. My husband is in school, so we should get help. Well that doesn't work for me. My husband was in school. And we made it work. Does that mean I expect everyone to? Heck no. But just because your hubs is in school doesn't mean your entitled to everything. If you can't make ends meet, then of course you should be getting help. But if you have cable, new cars, new phones, go shopping often. Well, then I would argue a different solution than government aide.

And the thing that REALLY bothers me is when people say "I will pay it back xxxx amount." Unless you keep track of how much you receive and then ACTUALLY pay that amount back, you won't. And what about those of us who struggle without taking the freebies? We just keep paying for it... That is the most frustrating thing to hear.

So there. I've vented. I believe these programs need to be in place, I believe in helping take care of each other. I understand these services. I have done my research. I can't stand when people say I don't understand because I don't use it. Wow. I'm an informed voter. I read. I research. Call me crazy. But don't accuse me of not understanding just because I don't use it. And I will call out the errors and abuse. Wic is meant to be a short term program to help people get back on their feet. It's not there to be abused. But who will call that out? Who really cares about being honest? Who cares about being honest in their dealings with others? Apparently not a whole lot of people.

I hope you can see where I am coming from. I hope you understand that I wasn't talking about YOU specifically. I hope you know that I understand these programs. I also hope you can see that this system is grossly abused. And that is not ok in my book.

Porter is TWO!

I'm not sure when it happened. I'm not sure how it happened. But I am sure that it did happen. Two years ago Porter made us a real family. Two years ago I had no idea how big my heart cold grow. Two years ago I never would have imagined how much I would love singing. Two years ago I couldn't imagine a walking talking little man.

I am so in love with this kid. I have to watch myself or I will end up one of those mothers that is obsessed with her son. I don't want to be THAT mother-in-law. But this kid is pretty close to perfect in our eyes.

He talks up a storm. Some people can't understand him but I sure can. He has lots of speech stuff going on right now but he is too young to worry (not to work on :) he has some cluster reduction (leaves off the 's') and some fronting. But I can enjoy it for the time being.

We surprised him with balloons this morning. First of all, Daddy was there which NEVER happens, so we walk in with balloons signing "Happy Birthday" and Porter just looks at us like he has no idea what is going on. Then he checks out the balloons. Then we took him out and he was able to open Mom and Papa's presents (my mom and dad) They gave him some trains and a track and he was in HEAVEN! He also got some shoes and some clothes and he looked at them and then handed them to daddy and went right back to his trains. Aren't those TOMS to die for! TO DIE FOR!!!!

Caleb made Porters favorite muffins, lemon poppyseed and we put candles in and sang to him. The whole time we sang he just looked at the floor. I have NEVER seen this kid so shy before. Then he blew out his candles. Right after he said "birthday again?" So he blew out the candles three more times. So cute.

I had to work today, which left me with major mommy guilt. But next week is SPRING BREAK and you better believe this kid is going to live it up.

I love this age. I love how we can talk to Pman and how he gets it. I will tell him to come up for dinner and he will yell "ok, I'm coming mommy". Something about that cracks me up every time. He is so sweet. An amazing cuddle buddy.

Some of your favorites are :
basketball (you call it baketball)
balls
horses
cows
trains
cars
nemo
mater
candy (you call it mum mum mum)
chocolate milk (you call it chalkly)
dogs
chickens
bath time
You are very sweet. If one of us coughs or cries (um I that is me, the hubs doesn't have tear ducks :) you come up to us, touch our backs and say "you ok, mommy/daddy?" You love to talk on the phone, if it's daddy or Mom or Ouma you just hold the phone and talk as you walk around the house. You are trying to spell your name but only know P-O so you say "P-O-P-O-P-O" it is so funny. You can spot the letter P anywhere. You are learning some other letters and chime in when I sing ABC's. You are very polite and say "thankyou" often. I said "thanks" yesterday (usually I say thank you) and you picked up on that right away. The rest of the day you said "thank" mommy or "thank" daddy. You are very encouraging and say "good job mommy/daddy" a lot. If you tell a joke you say "that's funny" just in case we missed it! There is so much more about you but I will post that later on. I just wanted to Say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" I think you rock! We love you Porter Boy. It's crazy to think how much you have changed. Two years dude. That's a lot. I can't wait to see what's in store for us....